


The Eighth Grade Lock-In

by zkyriaco



Category: Diary of a Future President (TV)
Genre: Angst, Bobby-centric - Freeform, Confessions, Locked In, M/M, Most characters are just mentioned, Third Time's the Charm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:14:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23578234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zkyriaco/pseuds/zkyriaco
Summary: The end of spring break comes with new challenges for Bobby: the infamous eighth-grade lock-in, and getting Liam back.  Fortunately, the combination results in a combined win.
Relationships: Bobby Cañero-Reed/Liam Carter
Comments: 5
Kudos: 75
Collections: Disney





	The Eighth Grade Lock-In

While his sister woke up excited and invigorated for the next week of learning, Bobby groaned as he woke up. Now that spring break was over, he’d have to face Liam. Bobby also wasn't as naive as his sister—he knew what he'd done. Unlike Elena, he couldn't deceive himself with hopeful dreams of Liam immediately apologizing and the two going back to their old friendship. Instead, Bobby found himself plagued with dreams of two very different outcomes of this first day back.

In the first one, the one he dreaded but understood, Liam never spoke to him again. This was reasonable, albeit depressing, as Liam had quickly grown to be one of Bobby’s best friends. Not to mention, it would be super awkward to share Danny and Ziggy with an uncomfortable ex-friend.

The other dream terrified Bobby. The other dream was… well, it was impossible, so there was no need to think anymore on it. But it kept coming back to Bobby’s head, wrapped in rainstorms of fears, clouds of confusion, and... sunbeams of hope. What if… If Bobby could just tell Liam how he felt—but he didn't even know how he felt! He just… wasn't sure if he wanted to go back to their old friendship. Maybe, if he wanted friendship at all, or…

“Robertico! All your things packed for the lock-in tonight?” Oh, yeah. That was happening today, too. God, Bobby just couldn’t catch a break. He had no idea how he was going to talk to Liam at school, let alone spend a night with him!

“Yeah, mom! Now can I _ please _ get my phone back? You know I’ll need it to contact you tonight,” Bobby whined. He had gone a full week without seeing the reactions of his friends, girlfriend, and Liam (the reason he was his own category was because of the fight, not anything else that made Liam stand out from Bobby’s other friends); he couldn’t stand another second. His mom pulled his phone out of her pocket, but continued to hold it out of his reach.

“You’re feeling—”

“Non-violent. I am. I promise. Peace on Earth!” Bobby quipped.

“And?”

“Willing to check in with my emotions, use my words, and not escalate conflict.”  _ This would be easy _ , Bobby thought. He preferred tennis to fighting, had an extensive vocabulary thanks to living with Elena, and—well, checking in with his emotions might be tough. Bobby could normally handle himself, easily, but with the new feelings Liam was giving him? He’d rather push them away and never “check-in” ever again.

That was fine. His mom didn’t know about those feelings, so he wouldn’t have to prove he was checking on them, as long as he didn’t start a fight over them again. Gabi handed Bobby his phone and he gratefully snatched it back, hoping to find a text from Liam—or any of his other friends who were also important! Bobby couldn’t help the wave of disappointment from seeing tons of texts from Danny, Ziggy, even Monyca with a Y, but none from Liam.

Whatever. He’d see Liam at school in twenty minutes; there was no way he could avoid him for that long.

The first thing Bobby learned when spring break ended was that yes, Liam could ignore him for that long. They shared half their classes, and only two of those included Danny or Ziggy! But Liam still found some way to shun Bobby all day. He’d start a conversation with someone he’d never met before, offer to switch seats, and even (or so it seemed, as Bobby couldn’t find him) skip class. By the end of the school day, Bobby was even more disappointed and exhausted. He just wanted to see his friend, goddammit!

Finally, the last of the sixth and seventh graders made their way out of the school, and it was time for the lock-in. This time, Bobby had a plan, and there was no way Liam could cold-shoulder his way out of it.

Bobby started looking for Liam the second he entered the gym, and caught him as soon as he could. “Hey! Liam!” The other boy finally turned around and looked at Bobby. At the sight, Bobby nearly melted—but he was on a mission.

“Liam, I’m really sorry about everything. Can we please talk? Alone?” Bobby was worried his friend would turn his back again, but Liam simply nodded. Bobby was ready to finally start their conversation, but a teacher suddenly grabbed the megaphone and started discussing the rules of the lock-in.

Partway through the announcement, Bobby was startled out of his thoughts by a tap on his shoulder. He looked up to see Liam, motioning for Bobby to follow him out of the gym and into the nearby storage closet. 

Wait, wait,  _ the storage closet? _ That was where all the eighth-grade couples went to Louisville Second Base! Obviously, Bobby and Liam wouldn’t be doing that, but the thought still sent a shiver down Bobby’s spine.

“So,” Liam whispered once they were safely hidden.

“So,” Bobby replied.

“We need to talk.”

Bobby would’ve laughed if he wasn’t so nervous. “Yeah, that’s why we’re here, man.”

“So why did we fight, bro?” Bobby internally winced at the use of the fraternal slang, then chided himself.  _ They were friends, what else would they call each other? _ The small voice in the corner of his mind whispered something about not wanting friendship, but Bobby was paying more attention to the excuse he was trying to come up with.

Except he couldn’t come up with an excuse. How do you excuse fighting your newest and closest friend? He’d already tried the prank excuse, and Bobby knew that was too weak. So, without a lot of thought going into it, Bobby blurted the first thing on his mind.

“I don’t think I want to be your friend!” Oh no. Liam looked quite affronted, and maybe a little hurt.

“That was the whole point of this? The whole “I’m sorry and we need to talk” was just a way for you to get me alone and say you hate my friendship?” Liam turned to leave, and Bobby sighed. He was really in it now, with the only satisfactory option being a confession.

“No!” Bobby exclaimed as the other boy turned the handle. Except… the handle wasn’t turning. Liam jiggled it again, but it was no use.

“Why do we always end up like this? First, we get locked in the gym and become friends, then we get locked in at a tournament and grow closer, and now I’m stuck in a storage closet with someone who hates me,” Liam sighed, and slid down the door to sit down.

“Maybe it’s a sign,” Bobby chuckled dryly. “Because, Liam, I don’t hate you. You just… you make me feel things that I have no precedent for.”

Liam looked up. “What do you mean, bro?”

“Like that. Like, I…” Bobby took a deep breath. It was now or never. “When you call me “bro”, I feel like crying. I mean, I’m not a crier, don’t worry, but I can’t stand being just your “bro”. Danny and Ziggy are my bros, heck, even Monyca with a Y is a bro, but you… You’re something different.”

Liam stared at Bobby for a moment, shocked and a little relieved. “So… you don’t hate me, you just… think I’m more than a friend?”

“Uh, yeah. And I don’t just mean “super-mega-best friends” or buhfaybisnotbifnew or whatever my sister has. Liam, I… have a crush on you. The reason I got so mad at the dance was because I didn’t want anyone to dance with you except for me.”

Liam’s smile grew, and he whispered back, “I have a crush on you too.”

With that, they heard a click and the storage closet opened to reveal Danny and Ziggy. “Bros, why does this keep happening? You gotta stop closing doors forever now.”

Liam and Bobby exchanged fond looks and smiled at their friends.

“For some reason, I have a feeling this was the last time.”


End file.
